Global growth e-commerce slows down

Global online sales have grown with 11% in Q3 2021. This is a higher growth than in the previous quarter, when online sales grew with 2%. However, compared to the same time last year, it is visible that the e-commerce growth is slowing down. The European amount of sales seems to be returning to pre-pandemic levels.

Globally, it seems that online stores have reached sales growth as before the COVID-19 outbreak. The year-on-year growth reached 11% in Q3. Meanwhile last year that growth was 63% in that same period.

E-commerce in Eastern Europe is growing faster than the global average. This quarter it achieved a 40% growth compared to the same quarter last year. The UK reached a growth of 20%, the Netherlands reached 18% and Italy 15%.

Higher conversion rates in some countries

The global conversion rate, which reflect the percentage of website visitors that decide to place an order, in Q3 was 2.4%. Online sellers in the UK and the Netherlands achieved conversion rates above the global average. Within the Netherlands, the conversion rate was 3.2% and in the UK this rate was 2.8%.

Germany and Belgium scored the global average, while Eastern Europe scored just below with 2.2%. France reached 1.4%, while Spain and Italy both reached 1.2%. This means that less visitors are willing to place an order in these countries.

Abandoned cart rates in Europe

While Belgian online stores reach the global average on conversion rates, their cart abandonment rate is lower than the average. On computer, Belgian stores reached an abandoned cart rate of 66%. Meanwhile the global percentage is 77%. On tablet, the rate is also lower (74%). The global rate on tablets is 81%. 83% Belgian online sellers on mobile devices abandon their cart. This is also lower than the global rate (86%).

The Netherlands also scored better abandoned cart rates on all devices (69%, 78% and 80% respectively). Sellers in the UK have better scores as well (74%, 76% and 83% respectively).